When Worlds Collide
by trycee
Summary: Mulder's feelings are hurt when he learns about Scully's past from her ex. Scully is forced to work with her ex at Our Lady of Sorrow's. William and Joy try to control absorbing Mulder and Scully's emotions. ANGST
1. Chapter 1

**When Worlds Collide**

**by**

**Trycee**

**Time-Line: Present Day, Rural Virginia**

**Disclaimer: I do not own the X-Files, this is written for fun not profit.**

It had been twenty two years since he'd laid eyes on her but he could spot her in a crowd from anyone. Her hair was longer than he'd remembered and he'd noticed that she'd stopped trying to dye her naturally red hair a deeper Clairol red. She wore heels a little higher than he'd remembered but her hips and the shape of her firm round behind could still fit nicely in his hands and her breasts were still as plump as he remembered. Her lips were just as pouty and her eyes were just as heavenly blue and he felt a stirring in his heart and his groin. He was staring at her from across the cafeteria. Twenty Two years and his heart could still skip a beat just looking at her.

For four years Scully avoided Our Lady of Sorrow's Employee and Family Appreciation Day. The year that the FBI dropped charges against Mulder, Scully finally attended shocking all of her fellow doctors, nurses and the nuns by bringing him, dispelling the rumor's that she was a lesbian and causing more than a few office pools to lose heavily that night. They kept to themselves as the entire hospital staff stared and whispered amongst them. And the three years afterwards, they continued to attend but again kept to themselves.

Then after the year 2012, a nervous Doctor Dana Scully along with her beau, the same dark haired handsome man walked in with a teenage boy and the entire cafeteria gaped at them. This young pre-teen boy had her identical face and red hair and some of her beau's features as well as he walked alongside of them. Her eyes darted around the room locking onto Father Ybarra who glared at her. The nuns were all gathered around in a cluster while her fellow doctors shook their heads in disbelief. The nurses though, the nosy nurses suddenly like magnets surrounded them.

"Doctor Scully! You have a son?", one of the nurses said, in a shocked high pitched voice.

"Where's he been all this time?", an older nurse questioned, looking from Mulder to Dana Scully.

William stepped closer to Scully's side and she placed an arm protectively around his shoulder. Ignoring the last question, Scully reached her hand out to Mulder and he squeezed it tightly. "This is our son, William."

They looked from her to Mulder and then down at William.

"It's amazing how much he looks like you both, but especially you, Dr. Scully," one of the women said.

"Man, you are secretive," one of them joked.

She smiled and then glanced over to Mulder. He placed his hand on his spot on her back and then guided his small family away from the women to the table where they sat alone. For the next two years, they were greeted with surprise but everyone knew they valued their privacy. The small family still kept their distance as they always did even when everyone realized that Dr. Dana Scully had married the tall handsome dark haired man without inviting any of them.

The rumor mills were running in overdrive as usual. So they watched them for signs of romance or break-up, which ever way would help them in winning they're bets. Each year the mysterious son returned still looking identical to Dr. Scully. They had theories on why Dr. Scully had never taken her husbands last name and paid more attention to the small family than they did their own families.

So, this year when Dr. Dana Scully came in joined with another teen, they were thrown for another loop. The excitement surrounding them died down when they realized that the girl was in fact, Dr. Scully's sons' girlfriend. William and Joy were in a world of their own as they stared into eachother's eyes, communicating solely within eachother's minds. Joy giggled occasionally and William had a lopsided grin on his face that often caught Scully off guard when she noticed, it was Mulder's smile. He had her face, her red hair, and her identical blue eyes, and her skin-tone as well. He was almost the same height as Mulder and his jawline looked like Mulder's and he had been fortunate to not have inherited Mulder's nose. Scully sighed at the sight of the two of them. They were made for each other.

Joy was a product of The Syndicate's experiments on pregnant women with alien DNA and William was a naturally born human with Alien genetics from Mulder's exposure to the Black Oil and her abductions. They had nearly the same abilities and they had found each other and were in as much love as she was with Mulder. Sensing what she was thinking, Mulder placed a hand on her back and then lowered his head to her ear, "Are they cute or what?"

She turned and smiled up at him. "Adorable," she said.

Mulder walked them over to the line, his hand never leaving her back, guiding her on. William walked in front of his parents holding Joy's hand tightly as the crowds seemed to part and people stared at them but his mind was glued onto the wordless conversation that he and Joy were having. The hospitals cafeterias' doors opened to the fresh Virginia air, where families were sitting and eating at tables. Each year the Annual Employee and Family Appreciation Day seemed to get larger and so for the past year, they'd set the food up in the cafeteria and set the tables out into the green expanse of land that the Catholic hospital sat on.

Mulder was anxious, he could see the long lines in front of him and his stomach was growling. Despite the stares and uncomfortable atmosphere, he dragged Scully and William out kicking and screaming every year just for the vast array of food alone. For Scully, after years of working with Mulder in near isolation and then avoiding all of the social events at Our Lady her years, it wasn't exactly something that Scully saw a need for. It was initially her idea to bring Mulder to the event after the FBI had dropped the charges as a symbol to herself that she was free to bring him to her job or anywhere in public that she wanted. But for past few years it was Mulder who looked forward to what Scully felt was an evening of intrusive stares and fattening foods.

The event was always catered by several local big city restaurants where Our Lady of Sorrow's was located, a small sized city with various restuarants and stores. Mulder and Scully lived an hour away where the only eating establishment was at the local gas station and as Mulder saw it, this event once a year was a way for them to get out of the gas station fried chicken of their small town, and eat something edible without the smell of gas fumes. And so every year, Scully relented.

The line moved and she watched as William and Joy finally broke apart to grab a plate and began filling it. The line had split and Scully glanced over to Mulder across the food filled table from her with a look of bliss on his face as he made quick decisions on what to add to his plate, trying not to overfill it with the same type of foods; Mulder wanted variety and there was tons of choices including desserts and he wanted to pace himself. Scully avoided nearly everything she saw, moving quickly through the line until she approached the salads and filled her plate with the various types of salads. She glanced up and saw a scowl on Mulder's face as he watched her. She couldn't help but smile at him because he had managed to fill two plates of food, one for each hand. She grabbed a drink and a fork and retreated off to the open doors with blinding sunlight until her eyes adjusted. She searched the tables and saw an unoccupied table far in the distance and so she walked slowly toward it, waiting for Mulder or William and Joy to catch up to her.

She could hear Joy giggling behind her and so she smiled knowing that William and Joy were hot on her heels. She walked past her co-workers and she smiled in their direction, greeting them,"Dr. Such and Such. Nurse Such and Such," without slowing down.

Finally, she came to the table she had picked out and sat her plate down full of salad with her drink and pulled out her chair and sitting comfortably down in the plastic chair. William sat directly across from his mother with Joy seated to her left side. Mulder placed both of his plates in front of him triumphantly and pulled up his chair, sitting inches away from Scully, his legs touching hers.

"You eat all of that, Mulder, and you'll have heartburn and probably will gain about twenty pounds," she warned, as she scanned his muscular body."That's enough food on that plate for four men."

"Scully," he said, in a tone she knew meant he would correct her. "If I ate like this everyday, that would be a problem. But, this is once a year. Besides, you make sure I eat enough rabbit food. So, let me enjoy this one day, alright?"

She glanced away and then her eyes settled on her plate. Mulder reached out and touched her chin, turning her in his direction. "Scully," he said, his voice dropping slightly. "I don't mean..."

"I know," she said. "All these years, I know you, Mulder. I don't mean to _Mom_ you."

"Slang, Scully?", he said, surprised.

She smiled and looked up at him, her eyes locking onto his. He leaned over and their lips pressed together. William watched as his parents kissed. He smiled to himself and then dove back down into his plate, inhaling the wingdings, pigs-n-blanket, and mini quiches and whatever else he'd quickly grabbed. He reached out his hand to grab a pizza stick from his dad's second plate and Mulder slapped his hand away. "Don't even try it!", Mulder threatened.

William and Mulder both smiled lopsided smiles at eachother. Mulder relented and dumped some of his treasure onto William's plate and they began scarfing down the remainder. Scully shook her head and winked at Joy, before picking up her fork and eating her salad.

He watched her from a distance. He couldn't believe what he was seeing. She had ended up with HIM. Just as she had left him for HIM. His wife stared at him and then followed the direction of his eyes and then looked back at him. "Who is she?"

He looked down at his three children. "Can mommy and daddy have a minute?"

His three children, two sons and one daughter stood up, eying their parents as they walked slowly away to join the other kids where clowns and outdoor jumping castles with blasting music and kids happy to escape their parents grasps. He turned his attention back to his wife, a woman he had tried to love but who had never lived up to _HER. _

"Who is she?", her eyes narrowed.

He sighed. "I haven't seen her in twenty two years," he said. "There's nothing to worry about, obviously," he said, reaching out his hand and sliding it into hers.

She squeezed it tightly. "A former girlfriend?"

"A former fiance."

"Dana Scully," she sighed.

He nodded. "She dumped me and this is the first time I have seen her since. I didn't even know she lived out this way or worked here."

"You switched careers along time ago," she said, eying him carefully, looking for signs that he still had any feelings for her. "We just relocated out here, so I'm guessing no this was not something you expected," she said, dryly.

He smiled at his wife and kissed her small hand. "We have three beautiful children. If she hadn't dumped me, I wouldn't have found you," he said, looking into his wife's blue eyes.

She smiled back at him. "I love you."

He repeated what she'd said to him, though in his heart he knew that he loved his wife but not fully, not as much as she deserved. "I love you too."

"So," she said, believing him. "Are you gonna sit there or are you gonna introduce us?"

He glanced around and noticed that their children had returned and he could see the worried looked on their faces. He smiled at them and welcomed them back. "Everything's alright kids."

Relief washed over there faces and they happily joined their parents. "I think we need to go introduce ourselves to Dana Scully. I think she'll be very surprised," he said.

The family picked up there empty plates and tossed them into the garbage cans as they made there way over to the table where Scully along with Joy watched as Mulder and William, had moved on to desserts. Scully watched in amazement as Mulder closed his eyes as he spooned a mouthful of sweet potato pie in his mouth. "Mm mm," he said.

Scully smiled a wide grin that erupted into giggles as she watched him. "How many pieces was that, Mulder?"

"Four or five," he said. "I lost count."

She turned to look back at Joy but then the color drained from her face. She was staring above her head at a man that was staring back at her, his eyes ablaze. The woman next to him had a warm welcoming smile. She had red hair, just like her with eyes just as blue as her own and she was nearly the same height as herself. There was just a slight difference in weight with Meredith having only about twenty pounds more than she did but then again she did eat 'rabbit food' as Mulder put it nearly all the time. Three young children were standing near him. She gasped as she looked at them. They were just as she had imagine children with Ethan would look like when they had been together. The girl had red hair like the mother while the boys had dark hair like his.

"Eh..Ethan?", Scully stumbled, and then glanced quickly to Mulder, locking eyes with him.

Her eyes stared into Mulder's a moment as he stood up straighter and leaned in closer to her, sensing something wasn't right. He placed his hand on the back of her chair and she could feel the warmth and comfort of his body. But, Scully could tell from the ridgeness in his posture that he was wondering just who Ethan was. She turned back to face him. "Ethan Minette, what a surprise," she said, as the shock began to wear off. "It's been..."

"Twenty two years," he said, a little harsh.

His wife turned towards him, her eyes questioning him and then she turned back to the woman who remained seated with her family. She noticed the similarities between herself and Dana Scully, they were striking. She had a sinking feeling that after eighteen years of marriage Ethan hadn't quite gotten over the woman in front of her. It made her heart ache.

Scully reached out her hand to his wife. "I'm Dr. Dana Scully, this is my husband, Fox Mulder."

"You married him?", Ethan said, taking his eyes off Dana and then focusing on Mulder. "You married _SPOOKY_, Dana?", he said, horrified.

Mulder's jaw tightened as he stared at the unfamiliar face of the man with graying hair around his temples.

"Mulder," Scully said. "Mulder, this is Ethan Minette, my...", she said, licking her lips nervously.

Ethan reached out his hand towards Mulder. "I was her fiance before she ran off on her first case with you!", he said, bitterly.

Mulder glanced down at Scully but she avoided his gaze. "Fiance?"

"Yeah," Ethan said, with a smile. "I was her fiance, until she met Spooky."

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	2. Chapter 2

**When Worlds Collide**

**Part 2**

**by**

**Trycee**

**Time-Line: Present Day, Rural Virginia**

**Disclaimer: I do not own the X-Files, this is written for fun not profit.**

"I see it worked out well for you, Dana," he said, as his eyes scanned her from the top of her head to her breasts. His eyes lingered on her breasts a little longer than they should. She fidgeted under his gaze. "Two kids?"

"One kid!", William and Joy could hear his inner thoughts and he was growing angry. William pointed to Joy at his side."She's my girlfriend."

"Ahh," Ethan said. "He looks identical to you, Dana. Good job."

She smiled meekly and glanced nervously at his wife who waited for their introductions but Ethan was busy staring at Dana Scully.

William and Joy being able to hear the strange couples inner thoughts were both disturbed by them. William especially was growing angry at the thoughts that were flooding Ethan's brain as he looked Dana Scully over. "My mom's married," William said, directly at Ethan as a warning. "Married!"

Ethan heard him but paid no attention to William or Mulder's possessive arm around Scully's shoulders as he crushed her to his side.

"I'm Meredith," Ethan's wife finally spoke. "And these are our three kids, that's Evan whose 8, Chris whose 10 and our little Danielle...," her voice broke off.

Meredith's face turned a deep red and she stared at the back of Joy's chair as if she were piecing it all together.

Little Danielle, a red head, spoke up. "I'm 7," the young girl added.

"Danielle," Scully said, quietly. She remembered that name. She locked eyes with Ethan and he smiled at her.

Mulder gripped Scully tighter as he glared at Ethan.

"So," Scully said. "What are you doing here...at Our Lady? You were a News TV producer!"

Ethan smiled. "Producing News shows isn't a stable position. Shows come and go, Dana," he said. "I saw a non-medical opening in a hospital in Nebraska and I took it."

"That's where we met and raised our kids," Meredith said.

Ethan looked at his wife and rolled his eyes, annoyed. "I worked my way up the ranks and now..."

"He's the Director of Oncology," Meredith said, proudly. "And that's why we moved here to Virginia. There was an opening."

Scully's heart sank. She knew that Father Ybarra and the board were searching for a new director and that meant that she would have to work with Ethan on a regular basis. She was a well-known Pediatric Surgeon who gained notoriety after having healed Christian and she was still a licensed Forensic Pathologist. She often dealt with children with cancer and so she knew there paths would cross quite often.

"Grreeeattt," Scully said, joylessly. "You live here in town?"

"Yes, right by the hospital," Ethan stated.

Scully was relieved. She turned to look at Mulder and could see the concern in his eyes. She glanced down avoiding his gaze.

"You don't mind if we pull up a chair and join you, do ya?", Ethan asked.

"Not at all," Mulder said stiffly, extending his hand in a welcome.

William looked at his parents and Mulder locked eyes with his son sending him a wordless message. _"Go on, William, this isn't for you."_

Joy could hear him too and so she stood up and they grabbed eachother's hand, walking off to leaving the adults alone. Ethan pointed to his kids. "Go on now and play, alright. We'll be right here."

The kids smiled and then took off running not far behind William and Joy. Scully quickly gathered up their plates and cups, tossing them in a garbage can, completely forgetting that all eyes were on them. She was more concerned with the couple who had seated themselves at her table. Meredith sat next to Scully and they smiled shyly at each other. They looked so much alike they could be mistaken for sisters. Ethan stared at Mulder and there was an uncomfortable silence between the two men.

"SO," Ethan said, breaking the silence. "Spooky, huh?"

"Ethan, you know his name, so use it", Scully said, glancing up at Mulder.

His face was inches from hers as he leaned into her and she knew they were going to have a long talk when they got home.

"Okay," Ethan said with a long lingering gaze at Dana. He then turned his attention to Mulder. "Fox Mulder, I'm just really surprised...", he said, at his hazel eyed nemesis. He turned his attention back to Dana Scully. "I mean...all these years Dana, I wondered what happened to you. I had no idea I would run into you here, married to FOX MULDER, of all people."

"ETHAN!", Meredith said, shocked. "You said that, several times. Now stop."

Ethan nodded to his wife. "No harm here. We're just catching up."

Scully glanced up to Mulder but she could only see his long muscular neck with his head staring straight ahead of him and so she turned back to face the couple.

"Did Dana tell you that we were engaged for two years?"

Mulder said nothing as he stared at the man. Scully could see the vein in his neck pulsating but he remained silent. Ethan didn't seem to notice as he continued on rambling. "Right after she left Jack, maybe a month or so and she started working at Quantico, we met. We were together for a year before I proposed."

Meredith did her best to smile but Scully could tell this was grating on her nerves as well.

"Did she tell you we lived together?"

Mulder's arm fell from Scully's shoulder and he pushed away from her. She turned to look at him but his jaw was so tight she thought it might break and his eyes were avoiding her.

"It wasn't official or anything, I still had my place but I didn't actually live there," Ethan continued, oblivious to the tension he was causing.

Ethan laughs a nervous laugh. "Did she tell you the story about the day she was assigned to work with you?"

No one answered but he continued anyway.

"She came to meet me at my job and told me that she had a meeting with...with..."

"Chief Blevins," Scully added, glancing at Mulder, but his fist was tight and she thought he would jump up and walk off.

"Yeah, and so I got upset because we had a trip planned for the weekend. She didn't even know that much about you. I was a news man. So, my reporters had interviewed you on occasion. We knew all about you. Isn't that funny? I knew more about you then she did!"

Scully glanced over to Mulder. "I did know about you, Mulder," she said, but Mulder's eyes were blazing. His arms hung against his sides and he was flexing his fists trying desperately not to blow his top in front of everyone.

"I mean, that day changed everything about our relationship. Before that, the only fight we had was if I made it home late for dinner! I mean we were just a few months from planning our wedding," he said, looking at Scully. "And so then she came to my job and told me she was assigned to work with you and I didn't like it. I didn't like the idea of her being alone with you," he said, in a hysterically laughter.

Scully turned to look at Meredith whose eyes fell to table. "I think I'll go check on the kids," Meredith said, rising up and walking off.

Unfazed, Ethan continued. "So, at dinner I told her no!", Ethan said, looking directly at Scully. "I told her to tell her boss to turn down the job. To stay at Quantico teaching. I told her I didn't want her working out in the field with you. I knew who you were. I knew you were an eligible bachelor, Mulder, and I didn't want, **_my Dana_**, around you! I wasn't allowing it."

Scully could feel the color drain out of her cheeks as she stared at Ethan. She turned to look at Mulder. He had shifted his gaze towards her but he still wasn't looking directly at her.

"So, that morning, I wake up and there's a note. _A note! She left me a note!", _he laughed. "Asking for my keys back and for me to remove all my belongings from her apartment suite. This was my fiance! But no, she was off with you," he said, staring at Mulder. "Well, I see it worked out well, Dana. You got what you wanted."

Father Ybarra placed a hand on Ethan's shoulder. "Well, hope everyone enjoyed their meal."

"Certainly!", Ethan smiled.

Scully nodded at Father Ybarra. He gave her a displeasing look and glanced at Mulder and then walked off.

"Well, I...", Ethan said, standing up, visibly rattled by his bosses sudden appearance. "I better go find my wife and kids. Nice seeing you again Dana," as he walked off.

There was a moment of deafening silence between them before Scully spoke. "Mulder...I..."

"Not here, Scully!", Mulder said with grated teeth, cutting her off. "All eyes are on us and we're already on display. We'll talk later."

He stood up and she watched as he searched the crowd for William and Joy. He could see them heading back their way. William looked at his father's face and he could see the extreme tenseness in his shoulders and in his jawline. Mulder was avoiding his gaze when he placed a hand on Williams shoulder. It felt like fire and he could feel the raging jealousy and anger that his father felt directed towards his mother. He looked over at her and she was sipping on a cup, her face stoic from years of practice but he could tell that something major had transpired between them. He could easily tap into their thoughts if he wanted but he focused instead on her emotions. She was a whirlwind of pain, fear and remorse hidden carefully away until she was ready to deal with it. William looked at Joy and she smiled at him shyly. He could hear her inner thoughts, _'They're fighting, let's stay out of it.'_

Mulder walked with his hand on Williams shoulder. Joy walked alongside them glancing back occasionally to look at Scully who trailed slowly behind them. None of them were aware of the nurses and doctor's watching them neither did they care as they made there way to their car. Scully climbed into her seat and buckled her seat-belt. Mulder snapped his own seatbelt on and pulled off without looking at her. She placed her hand on his leg but he pushed it off and she gasped. She turned her head from him as a tear trickled down her cheek. She wiped her tear away and closed her eyes, keeping her head turned away from him.

William and Joy watched them from the backseat. He could feel the intense pain and anger and he knew that his father was upset for a multitudes of reasons. They kept hearing the words '_Betrayed_' and '_Lied to me_' and '_Ruined_' in his thoughts. In her mind, they could hear her saying, _'Oh God, Oh God!', 'Mulder', and '__He R__uined __Our__ Love Story'._

Williams stomach cramped from the intensity in emotions he felt from his family. He gripped the sides of his stomach. Scully turned her head in his direction. She locked eyes briefly with Mulder and then she reached out and touched her son's knee. "What is it?"

"He's reacting to all the emotion," Joy said. "From both of you."

Scully looked at Mulder but he wouldn't meet her gaze. "I know you both can feel us and even know what we're thinking if you want but it's not nothing to worry about. Your dad and I are simply fighting. We'll get through it."

William met his father's gaze in the mirror. Joy gripped his hand as he tried to relax and tune them out but it was difficult. He had never seen or felt his parents arguing before. Not his real parents. The Van de Kamp's, he'd witness an argument occasionally but his biological parents were always so in-sync and full of love and he was so in-tune with them that he was surprised at how emotional he became when they suddenly were fighting. The hour long ride back to town was in silence. They stopped at Joy's home and waved to her mother Patty as they pulled back onto the road. When they reached the large cattle gate, William waved his hand and the door opened. Mulder continued to drive up the driveway and William waved his hand and the gate closed on it's own. Mulder slammed the car door and stomped up the steps. He opened the front door and tossed his coat to the floor and marched over to his office, slamming his office door shut.

William waited for his tiny little mother. He placed his hand on the middle of her back. He could feel her fears, her tension and pain. He knew she was holding back her tears until she was alone. He helped her take off her coat and she attempted a smile to ease his fears as he hung up the coat. "Such a gentleman," she said, with a hitched voice.

"Imma head towards my room and play Call of Duty."

She reached up and touched his face. He looked so much like herself it was eery. She smiled, "Okay."

She watched as he walked to his room and then took a glance over to Mulder's office door and sighed. She walked down the hall passed Williams room and shut their bedroom door. She walked to the bathroom and turned on the water and poured her scented bubble bath and watched as the green liquid turned into white silky bubbles. She stripped out of her clothes and then sunk down into the steaming hot water not registering that her body burned. She slipped a bath pillow behind her head as the tears began to trail down her cheeks and mix with her bathwater. She drew her knees up towards her and bent her head down, trying to muffle the sounds of her cries. Mulder's rejection and anger always cut her to the core. William closed his eyes. He hated when his mother cried because he could feel it as if it were happening to him. They were connected emotionally. When she cried he cried. He grabbed his headphones and put them on as he played his video game. He hoped that would help break the connection that he had with her. This was her pain alone and he couldn't force his father to forgive her. They would have to work this out for themselves.

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	3. Chapter 3

**When Worlds Collide**

**Part 3**

**by**

**Trycee**

**Time-Line: Present Day, Rural Virginia**

**Disclaimer: I do not own the X-Files, this is written for fun not profit.**

Scully's hair was damp and she was dressed in a fleece Spongebob pajama pants with a blue camisol and a white t-shirt overtop. She tapped on Mulder's office door but he wouldn't respond. She opened the door and saw Mulder sitting at his desk, a bottle of whiskey in front of him and a glass filled to the brim that he was sipping from. When he noticed Scully had crept into his office, he took a large gulp of the burning liquid.

"Will you talk to me now?", she said, nervously.

"For what?", he said, refilling the glass. "He seems to know more about you then I do."

"That's not true," she said, quietly.

"Twenty two years," he huffed. "We've been together and I thought we knew everything there is to know about each other...but today, I had a man sit and tell me something about MY WIFE that I didn't know...after TWENTY TWO YEARS of being with her!", he said, jumping up and crowding her.

"Mulder," she said, gripping his arms. "You're drunk!"

"He talked like you were still his!", he said, starring down at her. "Like he still loved you!"

"Mulder," she said, as her hands reached up to grip the side of his face. "I love you!"

"In twenty two MORE years, is some other man going to pop up and claim you too?", he said, pushing away from her.

She could hear the hitch in his voice and she could see him biting his lip, trying to stop the agnozing scream that wanted to erupt from his chest. He slammed his hand against his bookcase spilling the books on the floor. "YOU LIED TO ME!", he swung around, facing her. "YOU NEVER EVEN MENTIONED HIM!"

"Mulder...Please!", she said, looking up at him. "I didn't want to tarnish what we had. Our story. Our love story."

William appeared in the doorway, he slunk back when he noticed that his father was drunk. He'd never witnessed Mulder lose control before. He locked eyes with his tiny mother and she smiled back at him reassuringly. "Give us a minute, William, it's okay. I promise."

He turned and headed back towards his room.

"Mulder please, listen to me."

"Were you lying about loving me from the moment you saw me, Scully? Because you ran to him!", he said, shaking his head in disbelief.

"I ran to my sister's house first at I saw you," Scully said. "I told her how sexy you were and how I really thought you were incredibly gorgeous and I asked her how in the world would I be able to work with you? I told her how close you came to me and how it made me hot!", she said, grasping his arms. "Mulder, look at me, please."

He stared down at her, waiting for her to continue.

"She never liked Ethan and he bored me. He bored me to tears," she said, looking up into his eyes. "I had this thrill go through me when you came up to me and asked me if I believe in extraterrestrials, do you remember?"

"Yeah," he said, as she gripped his arms in a vice grip.

"I told her and she teased me sensely, Mulder. I told her to stop. I threatened her to stop and then I told her I had to go meet Ethan and then she rolled her eyes. I left and met with him. And it was true what he said. I went to his job. He wasn't happy about me working with you."

"You were living with this guy, Scully and yet it took me almost seven years to get you to even admit that you loved me, let alone anything else!"

She sighed and pressed her head to his chest. She glanced up. "Mulder, please...let me finish."

"Whatever...", he said, shaking off her grip.

"At dinner he gave me an ultimatium. Actually, it was more like an order, Mulder. He told me that I couldn't work with you. He said, I'd sleep with you and that he didn't trust you around me. He told me I couldn't go. So, I left him."

"Just like that."

"It was more than that, actually," she said, stepping back from him. "I didn't love him, Mulder. It was easy. And when I saw you, I had butterflies in my stomach. You were adventure, excitement, my first chance to be out in the field and you had me hot under the collar the day I met you. Ethan represented routine, the same boring nightly dinners, and another father. He was what I thought I wanted but I grew tired of it."

He was silent as he listened.

"Truthfully I was looking for any excuse to leave him and he gave me one."

Mulder shook his head. "Why didn't you ever tell me, Scully? Why am I hearing it from a stranger's mouth at an event with my son sitting there. Why after twenty two years, you didn't think to tell me?", he said, his mouth tight as he glared at her. "What excuse do you have for that, Scully?"

"I don't have one, Mulder," she said, looking up into his eyes. "I thought I told you everything. I thought I poured my heart out. But, I would always skip over Ethan."

"WHY?"

"Because it was too close to our story! I didn't want to taint our story!", she sighed. "I know that sounds stupid but it's true."

"You better explain it better than that!", he said, plopping down in his chair and snatching up a few sunflower seeds, popping it into his mouth.

"How would you have felt about me, Mulder if you knew that I had just broken off my relationship the day of our first assignment?", she said, desperately. "Would you still have thought of me the same way when I came running into your hotel room with nothing on? Would you have fantasized about me all these years? Or would you have wondered if I were looking for rebound sex?."

He shook his head. "I dunno."

"Would you be wondering what my fiance looked like and why I left him? Would you think that every decision I made as a green FBI agent out in the field for the first time was because I was overly emotional? That when I laid on your bed in my robe and listened to the story about your sister that I was thinking about Ethan?"

"I don't know, Scully, because you never gave me the opportunity!", he said, taking another gulp. "You are the elusive Dana Scully!", he declared. "So elusive, her own damn husband doesn't know shit about her!", he scoffed. "After twenty two years, you'd think I'd know everything about you. I know you're childhood fears, your childhood friends, the ones you can remember...I know about Marcus and the fire-truck, I know about the scar Bill gave you. I know he still hates me and calls me Spooky behind my back. I know you still cry about Emily and I know you're worried that William is growing up too fast and will leave us before we had a chance to spend any real time with him."

She stared at him and bowed her head as he continued.

"I know when you're not really in the mood but you just go along with it just for me."

Her eyes shot up and she glanced at the door to make sure William wasn't standing there. "Mulder, stop!"

"I know that you refuse to admit that you love it when I take the reins. You're so in control so much at work and in life that you love it when you don't have to think about work, or a sick patient or what to cook us for dinner, and you just have to relax and let me take the reigns but you'll never, ever admit it."

She looked up at the ceiling. "Mulder, I'm so...so sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you. You have to know that."

"I did, Scully," he said, pouring himself another drink. "But, you still haven't given me a good explanation as to why you didn't tell me about him. When you knew I respected you...When you knew I loved you...When we became lovers...When we had William," he said, as his voice rose causing the windows to shake. "When we ran away...When your record was wiped clean and you went back to school to renew your license...When you started working at Our Lady...All those years I hid out here...", he said, standing up as his voice rose even higher. "When we found William and fought against the Aliens! When we GOT MARRIED! And in the past few years have been LIVING in this HOUSE AS A FAMILY, it never occurred to you to tell me that you had been previously engaged. And by the way, hey Mulder, this jackass might corner you someday at some family event and tell you that!", he said standing up and flipping his chair over, storming off.

Scully swallowed hard. She sighed and then turned off the light in his office attempting to follow him to the bedroom but she stopped when she saw Mulder returning from the hallway with his bedroom pillow and a blanket. "Mulder, you don't..."

"DON'T," he said, glaringly. "Tell me what I should do, Scully!", he said, staring at her. "Because Little Mrs. Elusive Dr. Scully, might have more Skeleton's in her closet and I prefer the couch, remember?", his voice dripping with venom.

Her face was red as she looked at him. "Goodnight," she said, quietly.

Mulder tossed the pillow down on the sofa and he reached for the remote. It had been years since he had slept on a couch. He stretched out and tossed around. It was uncomfortable and he wondered how he had ever slept on one for so many years. He flipped the remote until he found an old movie he could fall asleep too, and he rested his head. His ego was bruised but more importantly, she had chosen for twenty two years to omit information about this man. There had to be more to the story, he knew that, but he wasn't sure if she would tell him and the one thing Mulder had always believed was that Dana Scully told him the truth.

Scully cried into her pillow until it was soaking wet. She bit down on her pillow trying to muffle the sounds. She closed her eyes trying to clear her head but she felt woozy. She felt a soft hand and she glanced up. William sat down on the side of her bed with a glass of water. "Mom, take this," he said, handing her some aspirin.

"William," she said, with a hoarse voice. "You didn't knock."

"Mom, why didn't you tell him?", he said.

She sighed and shook her head. "I had my reasons, okay."

"He needs to know."

"William, I love you but this is between me and you're dad. He's been mad at me before."

"Not like this," he said, as she swallowed the pills and gulped down the liquid.

"I have to work with this man," she said, with a sore throat. "I have a job to do. And I'll do it no matter who he was to me."

"Mom, he married a woman that looks just like you, didn't you notice?"

She reached out and touched his cheek. "I did notice."

"He was telling the truth when he told you he moved away to Nebraska," William said, tapping into her inner thoughts. "But I don't think he's here by coincidence."

She looked surprised. She grabbed a tissue by her bed and wiped at the tears streaming down her cheek and blew her nose. "Oh? He followed me?"

"No, he thought you were still in D.C."

"So he didn't stalk me!"

"Not exactly," he said. "He really was surprised to see you. But you're not far from his thoughts. He never got over you. He kind of never moved past his memories of you."

She thought about their conversation that evening at the dinner. "Danielle," they both said.

"She was a cute kid," William said.

"She was," Scully agreed.

She smiled at her son.

"Do you regret not having kids with him?", William asked.

She shook her head no. "I thought at one point I was going to marry him. He wanted three kids, the whole picket fence thing. It was his dream mostly. It was partially my dream. I did want kids but not so soon, I still had big dreams. He wanted to kind of pin me down. He wanted two boys and one girl," she said, as her mind went back. "I can't remember what we said the boys names would be...but the girl's name was my choice and I wanted it to be Danielle," she said, wiping her tears. "But, after awhile, I knew...I just knew he wasn't the one for me. And when I met you're dad," she said, sucking in the air. "God, he was gorgeous, probably the most handsomest man I'd ever met. He had these glasses on and his shirt sleeves were rolled up and I thought...Wow, is that what's out here?"

William smiled. "He thought you were pretty cute too, mom. That's why he breached your personal space all the time. He loved your mind, but he thought you were pretty cute."

She smiled. "From that day on he would find some reason to touch me or get in my face. I never minded because there was a connection between us that wasn't there with Ethan. Yes, it was easy for me to walk away from him. I didn't love him. Do you understand that?", she said.

William was starting to feel a little uncomfortable. "You should be explaining this to dad, mom, not me."

She sighed loudly and then placed a small hand on the top of William's head and smoothed her hand through his red locks. "Thanks for thinking about me."

"You're my mom!", he said, as an explanation.

She smiled a real smile and chuckled. "Go to bed!"

"It's 10:30!", he said, horrified.

She shook her head. "Okay, fine. I'll go to bed. You go play video games and text Joy but don't stay up too late."

She watched as he retreated and closed the door. She stood up and walked into the bathroom to the sink. She looked at her face. It was flushed and red with tear streaks that had dried on her face. Her eyes were puffy and her nose was raw and red. She turned on the water and scrubbed her face. She grabbed a towel and dried it off and noticed that not much had improved. She grabbed up a new pillow case from the linen closet and then turned off the bathroom light. She switched her pillow case and then clicked off her lamp, laying down in the bed alone.

**Please Leave Feedback: Thanks!**


	4. Chapter 4

**When Worlds Collide**

**Part 4**

**by**

**Trycee**

**Time-Line: Present Day, Rural Virginia**

**Disclaimer: I do not own the X-Files, this is written for fun not profit.**

She had set the alarm for 4 am and busied herself in the kitchen making coffee and eating a bowl of oatmeal and wheat toast. She slipped on a jacket despite it being July but this early in the morning, there was a nip in the air. She nearly panicked when she glanced at the sofa and saw no sign of him until her eyes adjusted to the dark and she looked down on the floor and saw him wedged between the coffee table and the sofa, snoring lightly. She was out the door before anyone could notice.

After years of braving the relentless Virginian weather, Scully had begged Mulder to install a remote control on the cattle gate and he had finally relented. That had made her life so much easier when William wasn't around. She pulled out on to the dirt road and headed towards the highway ready for another hour long drive into town. Some mornings she resented her commute. It seemed pointless to live so far away from civilization ever since Mulder was no longer wanted by the FBI and they had married. She knew William was often bored out in 'the sticks' but there were times when it seemed worthwhile when she felt that they're home was a haven that no one was privy too, a piece of paradise that they had fought long and hard for.

She made it to her office at 6:20, just enough time to get some coffee. She had a much larger office now, a private office where she could see patients and she had a few photos of her family. She smiled at her wedding photo. She and Mulder were kissing with her mom and William smiling in the background looking like a combination of them both, as he was. She checked her watch. The meeting would began at 7 am and she had to make sure she had all of her cases and notes. She donned her doctor's coat and checked herself in the mirror. The puffiness of her eyes was nearly invisible though she could tell that there was just a slight amount of puffiness still visible. She tilted her eyes back and dropped a few tiny drops of Vi-sine to make sure her eyes were crystal clear and without a hint of the night before. She grabbed up her soft briefcase and locked her office door and made her way through the halls of the hospital.

The hospital was bustling with excitement as nurses and nuns rushed by. She found the conference hall and checked to make sure it was the correct one, the one she was supposed to be at and then opened the door. There were medical and non-medical staff and she spotted him right away seated at the long conference table. He was dressed in suit with a white doctor's coat, despite being a non-medical staff but he was Head of Oncology, and so he was afforded the luxury. She found a seat along the side of the room and turned her back to him, digging into her briefcase to pull out her notes. She could hear all the chattering amongst the other doctor's and priests as they waited for Father Ybarra. They were all early for the meeting and he would come precisely on time.

She heard his voice and felt his presence besides her and she looked up. "Dana," he said, much to the surprise of her fellow doctor's.

"Doctor Scully!", she corrected him.

He looked amused. "Can I talk to you for a minute out in the hall?"

Scully's head hung low. She didn't want a scene of any kind and she knew that this was causing just that, a scene. Ethan clearly didn't care about hospital politics nor did he understand her. She watched as he walked out the door. She shuffled through her papers a moment more and then placed her briefcase on her seat and then followed him, aware of the stares she was getting, after all, he was a new staff member who apparently knew her personally.

"Dana, look," he said, sighing. "I need to apologize for yesterday."

Scully looked up at the ceiling and shook her head.

"I guess I came off a little strongly."

"You think?", she said, as her eyes rested on him. "Do you have any idea what the fallout was for what you did?"

He smirked. "My wife chewed me one, so yes, I do."

She huffed and shook her head.

"I dunno, that wasn't my intention, honestly. We came over to say hi and I saw you there...with _HIM _and all the emotions that I felt back then came flooding back."

Scully lowered her head. She had never thought about how Ethan had taken there break-up. "I'm sorry that it happened that way," she said, meeting his eyes. "We weren't meant to be!", she said, raising her shoulders. "We moved on and now we have jobs to do!"

He nodded his head and then his eyes caught her cross necklace. She followed his gaze and then looked up at him but he had looked away. "Again," he said. "I apologize. Tell Mulder, I didn't mean any harm by it. I would've been pretty mad had some guy done that with my wife."

"Okay," she said.

He noticed that she was dressed in four inch heels and was wearing nude stalkings that showed her toned legs. She was wearing a skirt or a dress but her doctor's coat covered it up. His eyes traveled up to her lips and he noticed they were still ruby red. He smiled and she ducked her head down shyly as she always did. He was sure that every man that came in contact with Dana Scully found that to be adorable. He knew he did. He always did but she wasn't the same Dana he knew. She was more confident, more secure in herself. That was not his Dana and he didn't like it.

Scully glanced at his doctor's coat. "Director of Oncology," she said.

"I worked for fifteenth years at the American Cancer Society in Omaha."

"Oh," she said, impressed.

"I had that Bachelor's in Applied Science and Film and my Master's in Cinematography which was why I was able to produce those news shows. You remember!," he said, as one of her eyebrow's raised. "But, with the internet, people stopped watching the news," he said. "And after you left, I got a non-medical job as an Administrative Executive Assistant, from there I worked as an Administrative Executive at the American Cancer Society and now..."

"Director of Oncology," she smiled. "Well, I'm certainly proud of you, Ethan. You didn't let the shifting trends get you down."

He smiled and then checked his watch. "Looks like it's almost time for that meeting."

She nodded. "We better go take our places. Father Ybarra doesn't like us to be late."

She turned to see Father Ybarra walking further down the hall and so they both walked back into the conference room and took there places.

During the meeting, Scully could feel Ethan's eyes on her and it unnerved her. She figured it was because she was the only person he knew but it still bothered her. After the meeting, she stood and gathered her belongings and was grateful when she no longer saw him. She walked back to her office and placed her files on her desk. It was nearly 9 am and she had to start meeting patients. She grabbed another coffee from her Keurig and closed her office up and walked down to her assigned station, nodding to the nurses as she sat down behind the desk. She drank the last bit of coffee and tossed it in the garbage can and read over the notes left to her by staff and nurses and then she was ready. She stood up and with her interns in tow. She discussed each patient with each intern as they moved on. She came to the last patient, a twelve year old boy named Brian Kelling. He had terminal cancer. She stared at the young boy and could see his nervousness. She smiled reassuringly and he relaxed. "How are you feeling?", she asked.

""I can't keep anything down," the boy said. "Can you help me stop throwing up?"

Scully touched his hand and turned to her interns. "We're going to call someone down from Oncology to check him out."

She turned back to Brian. "You just sit tight and wait for them to send someone. Just push your call button if you need us."

Brian nodded and then flopped back down on his bed and buried himself under the covers. Scully wrote out the order and entered it into the computer. She sighed and then moved on to discharging her first patient and scheduling surgery for the second. A nurse announced to her that Oncology was on it's way down. She nodded and stood up and walked back into Brian's room. She stopped in her tracks. _Ethan Minette._

"What are you doing here?", she said, with a raised eyebrow. "I need a doctor, Ethan. What are you doing here?"

He smiled at her. "I just wanted to come check him out for myself."

She looked over at Brian and then walked over to the corner, expecting him to follow. He reluctantly stepped over towards her. "Ethan, this is unethical."

"Excuse me?", he said.

"You are the Director, you're supposed to be over-seeing the department. Filing paperwork, hiring and firing. You have NO business in this boy's room right now!"

He threw up his hands. "Fine!", he said. "I'll send one of my oncologists!"

"Thank You!", she said, as he left.

She turned back to Brian. "It'll be just a little longer. I'm sorry, there was a mix-up."

Brian shrugged his shoulders and turned back to the TV program he was watching. Scully walked back to the desk and checked on the other patients. She was absorbed in it when the real Onocologist finally showed up. She walked back in and went over Brian's information with him. "He's a twelve year old male diagnosed with Ewing's Sarcoma. He was diagnosed two years ago."

The Oncologists Dr. Edwards touched Brian's cheek and examined his eyes which were sunken in. He examined his throat for growths and rolled his robe up his arm and checked for bruising along his arms and back. "Any more bruising?", he finally asked.

"None that we have seen."

He listened to his breathing and then wrote into Brian's chart. "We need to transfer him up to the third floor."

"Alright," she said.

"We'll take over his care," Dr. Edwards spoke.

"Dr. Scully?", Brian said. "Your not going to be my doctor, any more?"

She smiled shyly. "Dr. Edwards will be taking over. You'll get a whole new room."

She could see he was disappointed. "But, I'll come visit you."

Brian smiled and she touched his hand. "They'll be in soon to transport you upstairs, okay?"

Brian nodded and then relaxed his head back.

She walked out into the hall with Dr. Edwards, far from the Brian's room. "He's not going to last long. His prognosis is slim. He's on a downward spiral. Of course, we'll run tests but just from his outer appearance, his labored breathing and the bruising on his arms, I'll give him a few weeks."

He could see the look on Scully's face. "It's always hard to see young children die."

"I agree," she said.

"His cancer is aggressive. We'll run every test we can to see if I'm right or not, but from what I see, that's my initial guess. I'll let you know what I find."

"Thanks Dr. Edwards," she said sadly, shaking his hand.

They parted ways and she looked at her phone. She sat back at the desk and logged off of the computer. "I'm taking lunch," she told the head nurse.

She headed down to the cafeteria. She checked her phone, there had been no phone calls from Mulder. She sighed and stood in the busy line until it was her turn. She bypassed all the foods despite how delicious they smelled until she got to the salads. _'Live A Little, Scully'_, she thought to herself. God, she even heard him as the voice in her head. She got her standard baked chicken breast on a bed of greens with a small bowl of vinaigrette on the side and a mineral water and she retreated to her seat. As usual she sat down and was engrossed in something so as her excuse not to congregate. She had a reputation as a loner but it was from years of needing to trust only one person that had trained her to keep to herself. She pulled out the medical journal she'd chosen to read during her lunch and she was engrossed in it when he sat down across from her.

She placed the journal down and stared at him. The cafeteria was buzzing because everyone knew that unless there was a luncheon, Dr. Scully kept to herself. She wasn't unsociable, but years of running and then hiding with Mulder had taught her to keep her thoughts to herself and to keep a distance from those around her, especially in a hospital where people lived for gossip. On some level though, she missed socialization but years of being solely with Mulder had taught her that he was all she wanted and needed and the guy that had sat down across from her wasn't Mulder. "What are you doing?"

"Eating lunch with the only other person in the hospital I know," Ethan smiled. "Is that okay?"

She was cautious but then she accepted it. She turned back to her plate.

"You sure don't eat like what I remembered."

She cocked her head to the side.

"You would eat bowls of ice cream and you're favorite food was Chinese noodles," he said, laughing.

She pushed her plate in front of her. "I guess I've fallen into a rut. Even I don't find this appetizing right now," she sighed.

He pushed his plate towards her. "Half of my burger?"

"No, I couldn't...", she said, shaking her head.

"Shared between friends?"

"Friends!", she said, carefully.

He crossed his heart with his finger. "Come on Dana, live a little!"

"_Dana,"_ she scoffed.

"What?"

She shrugged her shoulders and then gratefully grabbed a half of his burger and began to eat it. She had a sense of guilt at the gesture and she wasn't sure if she should."It's actually pretty good," she said, enjoying the taste of the hospital's freshly grilled burger. "It's something Mulder would eat."

She saw the light in his eyes disappear. "What is it?", she asked.

"Ugh, nothing," he said.

"Well, thanks for lunch Ethan," she said, grabbing up her tray. "Back to work."

"Yeah," he said, as he watched until she faded from his view. "See you later."

**Please Leave Feedback: Thanks!**


	5. Chapter 5

**When Worlds Collide**

**Part 5**

**by**

**Trycee**

**Time-Line: Present Day, Rural Virginia**

**Disclaimer: I do not own the X-Files, this is written for fun not profit.**

"Mulder, pick up,"she said, as she paced her office. "I know you're not speaking to me right now and you're screening your calls...but you're my husband! And that means something," she said, closing her eyes. "I miss you. I need you Mulder. You know how this affects me when you're angry with me...please," she sighed, waiting.

She finally hung up and then plopped down into her seat. Her phone rang. "Mulder?"

"I got you're message!"

"Can we talk?", she said.

"Talk Scully," he said, as he stared at his computer screen in his office, going over paranormal cases he would investigate next.

"I'm sorry, Mulder. I really am, Sorry and I know that's not enough. But, there really wasn't a good reason I didn't tell you about him. I just skipped over him."

"Is that it?", he said, leaning back in his chair. "Cause I don't think that's it, Scully. My gut feeling tells me there's more. Like why does he seemed to be married to a woman that looks like you!"

She swallowed. "He was controlling," she sighed. "But he was different than Daniel. Daniel was an older man who was controlling. And I pushed against it plus, I was his mistress and he was my professor and his wife found out. Jack had been my teacher at the Academy and I started dating him while I was still in the Academy. He was selfish and I was nothing more than just a warm body to him."

There was a long silence.

"Go on," Mulder said.

"So, then after training and our assignments we broke up. He moved on to the next student and I moved on to Ethan. Ethan like the others was older than me and like the others he viewed me as a prize, not as a person. He wanted a little homemaker and I wanted to be out in the field and do something with my life, but that's not what he wanted."

"Go on."

"My dad loved Ethan. He thought Ethan would have me married off and settled down and he would be crawling in grand kids and that's what my parents wanted. That's what Ethan wanted. A dutiful wife who cooked him dinner, listened to his stories about the newest exclusives or be there when he jetted off to Iran or something."

She could hear Mulder's breathing.

"And for awhile I was that for him, Mulder," she sighed. "But then I began to resent him, just as I did the others. _I_ wanted to be the person that did those things. And when I met you...in an instant my life changed. _I_ had the exciting assignment. I _was_ going to be the field agent _finally_ and I saw you and you took my breath away and when I went to tell Ethan my news, he told me I couldn't do it. So, I made my decision and I've never looked back. I didn't want to look back, Mulder. I'm sorry for not being honest with you. I'm sorry, for lying to you. I'm...sorry, Mulder. There's nothing else I can say...except, I swear I'll never lie to you or keep anything else from you again!"

He sighed loudly in her ear. "I guess there's things about each other we can't possibly know, Scully. We can't know everything about each other, whether it was twenty two years or eighty. I'm sorry I over-reacted."

"No," she said. "I understand."

"No, Scully," he said. "How bout I send William to spend the night with your mom at her condo?"

She smiled into the phone. "Alright, sounds like a plan."

"I love you," he said.

"I love you too."

She hung up the phone and it felt like the weight of the world had been lifted off her shoulders. She closed up her office door and went back to her floor. After work, Scully changed back into her skirt and top and bagged up her scrubs for laundry and headed for the exit with her briefcase in tow. She was ready for a quiet evening with Mulder. She was sure he was going to attempt to cook, though she was hoping that he wouldn't, and she would instead cook for them or pick something up that wouldn't congeal on the hours drive back home. She walked to her car and gasped. Ethan leaned against his car facing hers. He was parked right along hers though she was sure he wasn't parked there that morning.

"Okay," she said. "What's going on, Ethan? This is beginning to be too much!"

He laughed. "Actually, I was waiting on my wife to meet me here."

"Really?," she crossed her arms in front of her and then looked around her. "Where is she?", she said, in her best FBI voice.

He laughed a little. "She had to use the little girls room. The kids wanted to see the inside of the hospital."

"Ah" she nodded. "Well, Director Minette, it has been an interesting day."

Ethan looked at her curiously. "Yes, certainly."

"I...I have to go on home now. Mulder is waiting on me."

"Mulder is a lucky man," he said, looking her over. "The older you get the more delicate and refined you seem to be."

Scully shook her head. "Ethan, I'm sorry, but saying things like that crosses a line."

"It's a compliment, Dana," he said, throwing up his hands. "I mean...I know, I tend to say and do the wrong things when it comes to you...but I really am just trying to give you a compliment."

Scully could hear some children laughing and she turned to see Meredith walking with her kids surrounding her. Meredith looked dismayed when she saw her. Scully waited until she approached and then smiled in her direction. "Meredith," she said, as a greeting.

"Dana Scully," Meredith said, as she shot a look over to her husband. "What a...a surprise."

He nodded agreeing with his wife and then turned to looked at her. "Dana, was just leaving" he said, lingering longer. "Mulder's waiting for her at home."

"Yes, he is!", she said.

He turned back to his wife. "Oh, and I did apologize to her about my behavior this morning."

"Oh he did!", Meredith said, pleased. "Oh, I am happy about that. I was so upset at how he acted yesterday."

Scully smiled shyly. "It's forgotten!", Scully announced.

"Oh good!", Meredith said. "US redheads have to stick together!"

Scully smiled but she could tell that Meredith was doing her best to hide her emotions. She could see a sadness in Meredith's eyes. It was like having her there standing next to her husband was like a dagger in her heart, no matter what she was saying, it was all in her eyes. She needed to ease Meredith's fears. She needed to boost her ego somehow. After all, he had married her because she looked like a carbon copy of her.

"I appreciate it," Scully said. "I have to go though. My husbands waiting on me. We're having a date night tonight. You know how that is," she said, with a wink in Meredith's direction. "We're both lucky to have married the men we did, aren't we?"

Meredith looked stunned and then glanced over to Ethan. "I do," she said, dryly. "We are."

She opened her door and sat down into the drivers seat. She pulled off and headed home. She wasn't sure about Meredith but she knew _SHE_ was at least lucky to have married the man she'd married.

Mulder opened the door and pulled her into his arms, she melted against him, closing her eyes. He pulled her back and held her face with both hands and kissed her cheeks and then her lips. She kissed him back fiercely, pressing him firmly to her body. She smiled and then his brow crinkled. "What's wrong? What is it?"

"How'd you guess?", she said, shaking her head.

"I know you," he said.

"Can we sit down?", she said, noticing the lit candles on the table and the table settings and a roaring fireplace crackling and a disc he'd purchased called Slow Jams for their love-making sessions. She sighed as she looked around and then focused back on the man who was holding her in his arms. She could see the love in his eyes when he looked at her and she was happy.

"You cooked?", she said, curiously.

"I boiled spaghetti and poured sauce from a can. I hope you'll call that cooking," he smiled.

"You are so sweet when you want to be."

He looked concerned. "What happened, Scully?"

"It was Ethan," she sighed. "He was every where today. Every time I turned around, he was there."

"In what way?"

"I don't want to spoil our dinner," she said, looking up into his loving eyes. "Can we have our date first?"

"I'd rather find out first, Scully," he said, tucking a strain behind her ear.

She sighed knowing he wouldn't move further until he knew the facts. "Okay," she said. "Before the meeting, he apologized to me and you for his actions. He seemed sincere."

He nodded his head, encouraging her. "Then I had this patient and he needed an Oncologist. He has stage four, Ewing's Sarcoma. And I request an Oncologist and what I get is Ethan."

Mulder grabbed her hand and pulled her to the table. He pulled out her chair to her delight. She waited until he came back with two plates of over-cooked spaghetti with canned sauce and grated Parmesan cheese and she smiled at his effort. He placed some oven baked garlic bread on the table that had been tucked in the freezer and poured her a glass of wine. Moments like these, she knew she had chosen the right man. No other man could make her heart flutter from such a simple act. She leaned over and kissed him. "Thank You for this."

He smiled crookedly and then she could see him starting to concentrate as if what she'd said had finally registered with him. "You said he showed up instead of the Oncologist?"

"Yes," she said, digging into her meal.

"I don't like this, Scully," he said, having not touched his meal.

"Eat Mulder," she said, looking at his plate.

He picked up his utensils and began to eat his spaghetti.

"So what else?"

"So then at lunch, I was sitting alone, as usual."

"Yeah..."

"And he sits down with me," she said with surprise.

She could see the shift in Mulder's eyes. She reached out her hand. "Mulder?"

He placed his hand in her tiny hand. "Go on, Scully. What else?" he said.

"He said, it was because I was the only other person he knew and we were friends."

Mulder had lost his appetite. She could see the wheels in his head turning.

"After work he had moved his car next to mine. I was worried but his wife and kids were there."

She could tell that Mulder was tensing up.

She licked her lips. "I feel really sorry for Meredith, ya know."

Mulder watched as she ate her food. He was pleased that she finished it but he couldn't eat any more.

"Mulder?", she said, as he stared at her.

He grabbed her tiny hand and pulled it. She stood up and he pulled her on down the hall towards the bedroom and closed the door.

Scully awoke several hours later and reached out grasping for Mulder. He grabbed her hand and squeezed it. She turned to look at him with his golden bare chest and stomach and a sheet barely covering his nether regions. She sat up, pulling the sheets around her own naked body. "Mulder?", she said as a question. "Since when don't you sleep? Not since we've been together," she said, laying onto his stomach.

He ran his fingers through her hair trying to lull her back to sleep. Her eyes closed and she fell asleep for a few minutes and then she woke up again. "Mulder?"

"Yeah, Scully," he said.

She pushed up from his stomach and looked into his eyes. She touched his chin and ran her fingers along his lips.

He raised her up against his chest underneath his chin and then she leaned her back against the headboard. She was bare, her breast alighted by the moon with hardened nipples from the cool breeze and he was enjoying the view. She flinched from a sting on her shoulder. Her mind registered that it was a bite mark. "Was this your way of branding me?", she asked.

He chuckled. "Maybe," he said, in a voice that reminder her of the Mulder she remembered from the past.

"Mulder, you don't have to do that," she said, leaning his head against the top of her head.

"I know," he said. "I know you're mine."

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	6. Chapter 6

**When Worlds Collide**

**Part 6**

**by**

**Trycee**

**Time-Line: Present Day, Rural Virginia**

**Disclaimer: I do not own the X-Files, this is written for fun not profit.**

Scully set the alarm for 6 am. She was snuggled up to Mulder's warm body and enjoying sleeping in for a change before she had to go into work. No early meetings meant that she could enjoy his comfort just a little longer before reality struck, so when the alarm went off, she groaned loudly and covered her head with the covers. Mulder peeked underneath. "Scully?"

"I'm not here!", she giggled.

"You're not?", he gasped. "Well, then what am I nibbling on.

"Mulder!", she squeaked.

"Mmmmmm," he said, inching the covers away to reveal her bare shoulder. He could see the bite mark he'd left from the night before, purplish and redden and he kissed it as he licked his way up her throat to her cheek.

She gasped as he turned his body over and tossed the blanket aside and hovered above her. "Mmmmm," he continued.

She closed her eyes as the feelings of ecstasy washed over her. _There was always time for this, _she thought to herself. _Always!_

Scully walked into the kitchen sporting her scrubs. She had forgotten about the mess that was leftover from their meal. The fire had died out long before and the CD was on repeat still playing on low. She turned it off and then gathered up a few dishes to take into the kitchen. She rolled her eyes at the mess that awaited her. On the stove was a liquified starchy mess from what was pasta. There was two opened cans of spaghetti sauce that had drizzled and dried on the counter. She sighed and glanced at her watch. She was already cutting it close thanks to Mulder's extra bout that morning, and she knew it would irritate her all day just knowing that this mess was left.

Mulder walked up behind her and he could tell that she was battling with herself over her obsessive need to clean and her need to arrive to work on time. "Scully, I'll take care of it, now go, you'll be late."

She turned immediately and stood on her tiptoes and kissed his lips. She then quickly grabbed her briefcase and was out the door. Mulder stared at the mess in front of him. It was his mess and he had to clean it up before William got home. He started with filling the sink full of hot suds. He smiled to himself as it began to fill it. It reminded him of Scully's bath and the way she'd sink down into the suds with only the top of her head popping out. He shook his head. He had to get her off his mind _for at least a minute. _But then his mind returned to the thing that had been bothering him in the first place..._Ethan Minette_.

Scully glanced at her watch, she had made it in enough time to do what she wanted to do before she had to start. She pushed open her office door and put her briefcase on her desk. She donned her doctor's coat and checked herself in the mirror. She had to rush to visit him before her scheduled surgeries. She made her way up to the third floor. She saw his office door and could see him inside pacing back and forth with papers in his hands. She turned her back, hoping he hadn't seen her and she searched for the room number 315, and then ducked inside.

Brian Kelling's head had been shaved much to her surprised but he smiled when he saw her. "Dr. Scully, you came."

She smiled back at him. "I thought I'd come visit you before I started my rounds," she said, walking over to the side of his bed. "A promise is a promise."

He nodded his head.

"So how are you doing?"

"My head feels cold," he laughed, as he smoothed his hand over his bald head.

She smiled kindly and looked around the room. She noticed there were no signs of his parents, just like when he had been her patient. "So did you order breakfast?"

He shook his head. "I'm not sure if I can hold anything down."

She turned when someone shuffled into the room. "He can order anything he wants, eat all day if he wants. I'll make sure he gets an anti-nausea medicine," Ethan Minnette spoke.

Scully stared at him like he had grown three heads.

"He's my special little patient."

"_Your_ special little _patient_?", she said, with a raised eyebrow. "Director Minette, when did you receive your medical license?"

He smiled and winked at her. She stepped back from him in surprise.

"So," he said, walking up to Brian. "How are we doing today?"

Brian stared at Ethan. He took in his suit and tie with the white doctor's coat and shook his head. "You're the guy from yesterday, right?"

"I am," Ethan said, embarrassed. "Are the doctor's treating you right? Are the nurses?"

Brian turned to look at Scully but she was watching Ethan closely. Brian turned his attention away from the man in front of him and went back to the hospital provided video games. A nurse walked in and looked irritated. "Can I help you?", she said to them both.

Scully smiled a reassuring smile at her. "I'm Dr. Scully and he was my patient. I was just coming to visit him."

The nurse softened and then turned her attention to Ethan. When her eyes saw that he was the Director, she straightened up and walked over to Brian's side, checking his IV's and settings, shooting nervous glances in his direction. Ethan seemed amused but then he turned to Scully and she had her arms crossed with a scowl on her face. He was about to say something when a doctor walked in.

"Director Minette", Doctor Edwards said, looking between Ethan and Scully."Was there an incident here, I didn't know about?"

"Oh, no, no!", Ethan smiled. "Dr. Scully and I are old friends," he explained. "I just popped in to see Brian and talk with Dr. Scully."

Scully was sure that she had masked her emotions well in front of both men but inside she was furious. "I have to go,"she announced.

She turned towards Brian. "I'll come back tomorrow and check on you, okay? Before my shift."

Brian smiled back. "Thanks Dr. Scully."

She nodded her head and then quickly exited the room, leaving the two men behind.

Mulder was outside loading up the trailer of his paranormal business when a gold Camry pulled up in the driveway. William hopped out and ran up to his side. He hugged his son and ruffled his red hair. "Fun at grandma's?"

"She let Joy come over and we binged watched Breaking Bad for a few hours."

Mulder smirked. "Want to go to work with me?"

"Sure," William said, tossing his back pack on his back. "I'm gonna go shower and change, I'll be right back."

Mulder watched him leave. He looked surprised when Maggie opened the car door and walked up to him. He smiled and hugged her tightly. "How are you?"

"Fox, I'm fine," she said, with kind eyes as she looked at him. "William told me that Dana ran into Ethan at a dinner the other day."

Mulder nodded his head. "Yeah, he now works at Our Lady."

"Did she ever tell you that I never liked him?"

Mulder looked surprised. "No! She said, she thought you did."

Her eyebrow raised exactly like her daughters. "A mother knows," she said. "I knew something was wrong. I couldn't put my finger on it but I knew it," she sighed. "You know how Dana is. She's secretive. She would never let on that anything was wrong between them but I saw it in her eyes. They looked empty," she said, staring at him.

He placed his hands on his hips and looked down at the ground. He was trying to imagine Scully that way and the only time he could that even came close was during her cancer.

"Fox?"

He smiled up at Margaret Scully. "Are you worried about her?"

"I am," he said, kicking a stick. "I know she can take care of herself...but...I worry about her."

She placed a soft aging hand on his arm. "She loves you, Fox. When I was telling you that with Ethan her eyes were dead...it's true but with you...I've never seen that. Her eyes are lit up in a way I've never seen before and I'm her mother!", she smiled.

Mulder chuckled. "Thanks Mrs. Scully."

"By the way," she said, with a chuckle. "I need to start billing you when you send William over. He nearly ate me out of house and home! I think he eats more than Bill and Charles combined."

Mulder laughed some more. "Sorry!"

"I'm kidding. He's my grandson! You know I don't mind!", she smiled. "It was very quiet. Joy and Will weren't saying a thing as they sat watching TV. I put down some food and it was gone! You know I love having him."

"I know," Mulder said, squeezing her hand.

"Well, I better go. There's a choir rehearsal this morning at the church."

"See you later, Mrs. Scully!"

She waved and climbed back into her car and drove off back through the gate. William came bursting through the door. "I'm ready!"

Mulder patted his son on the back. "Come on, let's go!"

Scully had several surgeries scheduled and so she sat in the locker room, going over her notes. Her patient was five years old and had been wheeled into the prepping area, waiting for her to come talk to the parents. A nurse stuck her head into the locker room. "Dr. Scully, we're ready for you."

She walked down the hall, wearing her scrubs and her white doctor's coat and she shook the nervous parents hands. She smiled at the young girl and grabbed up her chart, checking it again, as the parent's waited patiently for her to speak.

"We're going to repair a tear on her knee," she explained. "It should take less than an hour," she said, as they glanced from their little girl who was holding a teddy bear to the tiny doctor who stood before them. "We're going to take great care of her."

"Thank You," the mother said.

Scully smiled and then removed part of the sheet and gown, exposing the girl's swollen leg that had been numbed. She used a skin marking pen to indicate the incision marks and then covered up the gown and sheet. She smiled and touched the girls hand. "Are you ready?"

The girl shook her head no.

"Is that your friend?"

She nodded her head yes.

"Boy or Girl?"

"A girl."

"What's her name, sweetie?", Scully questioned.

"Missus Snuggle-pop," the girl said, hugging her bear.

Scully could tell that she had just made up the name. "Well, why don't we let her go with you? Would you like that?"

The girl shook her head yes and smiled over to her mom.

Scully smiled back. "Okay, see you both soon," she said, warmly. She turned to the parents. "It'll be fine."

The nurse came to wheel the girl away and Scully headed off to get scrubbed up for the surgery. After she was gloved and outfitted and the girl had been given anesthesia, she was ready for the surgery. This was one of many routine surgeries she often performed and so she didn't expect an audience. No one ever came to these things. But just as she was about to make her incision, something caught her eye in the observation room. A dark figure sitting and watching. She was standing on a box to give herself some height over the operating table and so she focused hard on the figure as everyone waited for her to start. It was a male figure and then it donned on her who it was.

_Ethan Minette._

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	7. Chapter 7

**When Worlds Collide**

**Part 7**

**by**

**Trycee**

**Time-Line: Present Day, Rural Virginia**

**Disclaimer: I do not own the X-Files, this is written for fun not profit.**

Scully was exhausted. She'd had two back to back surgeries and she needed coffee and a good meal. She went through the cafeteria line and decided to check out the menu. The cooks looked surprised. Her typical fare was yogurts and salads and an occasional grilled chicken breast but she was never very adventurous. Every one of them had a crush on her and so they looked forward to the days that she worked, even if she just breezed on by them. But there she was with a wide beautiful smile, looking cute in her blue scrubs and actually looking interested in the menu they'd prepared.

"Hi there!", one of the guys said.

"Hi," she said, with her forehead crinkling as she tried to read the specials written in swirly script.

She could tell by the way the guy smiled at her that he was taken by her even though she could barely look over the sneeze guard counter. "I'll have the grilled chicken, the sauteed squash."

"That's fried squash," the guy corrected in a strong Virginian accent.

She looked surprised but didn't change her mind. "I'll also take the mac n cheese!"

"It comes with cornbread!", he said.

"That's fine," she said, nervously.

He glanced at her a few times as he fixed her plate. "No yogurt today, Dr. Scully?"

"I'm trying to live a little," she said, taking it from him. She thanked him and then grabbed a diet soda and paid for her meal.

She walked over to her favorite spot, it was further in the back, a single table far from prying eyes so she could have some peace. She wasn't a complete recluse. She did socialize on occasion but she felt more comfortable in her own space. She sat down and pulled out her next file for the next patient for the third operation of the day. She began eating her food and was grateful for once that she had something other than a salad. She was caught off guard when a tray appeared in front of her with a male hand attached.

She glanced up and closed her eyes briefly and then turned around to see who all in the cafeteria was staring in her direction. She could see that she and Ethan were on display. "What in god's name are you doing, Ethan?", she said, quietly.

She was grateful that her every word could not be heard but she was sure that the gossip mill was on full swing.

"The last thing I need is to have a scandal with my name attached run rampant through this hospital. I have a reputation to uphold!", she said, glaringly. "What the hell do you think you're doing lately? This morning with the patient! And then watching me in the observation bay. Answer me! What are you doing?"

Ethan plopped down in the seat across from her and then sighed. "I'm trying to figure that out myself," he said. "Look, I'm not stalking you...it's just that when I saw you the other day...alot of feelings came rushing back to the surface. Feelings that I never let go of."

Scully shook her head. This was like a nightmare for her.

"I love my wife," he said, throwing up his hands. "I love her, But, I finally realized, and I know you probably think this is crazy that I'm just realizing this but, it's because she looks similar to you. That's why I fell in love with her. She reminds me of you. Like the Dana that I knew years ago. And then after three kids, things kind of died down for us. It's not exciting anymore."

Scully looked into the dark eyes of her ex and saw the graying of hairs around his temples and she felt sorry for him for a split second but then she grew increasingly uncomfortable.

"I see the new Dana and your exciting and thrilling and I have a lot of regrets," he said, staring down at his plate. "I'm very confused on how I feel...seeing you again after all these years."

She sighed loudly. "Ethan, you are a married man and you're wife deserves love and respect for who _she_ is. I can't solve the problems with you and your wife. You don't know me, Ethan. And truthfully, you didn't know me even then!"

He frowned as he stared at her but she continued. "You are crossing the line professionally and personally!", she said, rising up.

"What about your lunch?", he said. "You can't sit with me as a friend?"

She looked down at her plate and tray. "I'm no longer hungry." She grabbed up her files and her tray and walked off.

Scully checked the observation bays for her next two surgeries and was grateful that he wasn't present. After her surgeries were done, she left the hospital with a few of her colleagues on the rare occasion that she socialized. There was one particular restaurant across the street from Our Lady that was frequented by all the hospital staff and that was where her colleagues had chosen to eat. It was packed full at this time of night, after all, there was a mandatory staff and faculty meeting for all non-essentials with Father Ybarra that took place once a year in the auditorium.

She bowed her head and made the sign of the cross before she began eating her meal as did her colleagues. Our Lady was a private Catholic hospital and being a devoted Catholic was a requirement for employment, and so praying over there food for nearly all of them had been ingrained in them from birth. She smiled at her fellow doctors before digging into her turkey burger with seasoned sweet potato fries and broccoli slaw.

"So, Dr. Scully," Doctor Edwards said, glancing around the table before his eyes settled back on her. "There's word that there's problems arising and your name keeps being mentioned."

Scully's eyebrow raised. "In what way?"

He leaned in closer to her ear. "The new Director of my department," he whispered. "He has only been here two days and hasn't gotten anything done."

Scully looked around the table at the two other doctor's who were both nodding in agreement. She looked back at Doctor Edwards and he continued. "The kids Parent's, many of the Staff, the nurses, a lot of us doctor's are all pissed!", he said, looking at Scully.

"I've heard about it in my department," Doctor Ellen Leahy said.

Doctor Holstein cleared his throat. "No program budgets are being approved, no equipment has been ordered. It's like no one is at the helm!", he complained.

They were all staring at her. "But, what do I have to do with all this?", she asked.

They looked at each other and then at her. "He seems to be neglecting his duties and focusing his attention...on you."

"There's been some low level rumblings, nothing to take to the higher up's yet," Doctor Edwards said, "But Minette has told more than a few people that you were past friends, but he's neglecting his new responsibilities and turning up in places he isn't supposed to be just because..."

"I'm there," she sighed. "We were friends in the past," she said, looking at them. "But his mistakes are solely his," she said, looking them directly in the eyes. "Believe me any attention that he is paying me is absolutely unwarranted."

They nodded their understanding. "That's why we thought we'd come to you and let you know before you hear it from someone else."

"I appreciate it," she attempted a smile.

Just then her phone rang. "Scully," she answered.

"Hey, Scully," Mulder's melodic voice rang out.

"Hi, honey," she said on purpose. "Where are you and Will?"

"We're about two hours outside of town, so we stopped for pizza. We might have a night investigation, but I'll let you know."

"Do you want me to go home or stay here?", she said, sitting up.

"When we see a few more signs that'll give us an idea if we should stay or not. We're trying to listen to some daytime EVP recordings and Roy has been scanning the videos we recorded so I'll call you."

"Remember I have my mandatory meeting."

"I didn't forget," Mulder said, handing the phone over to William.

"Hi, mom."

She smiled wider. "Hi, sweetie."

"Mom," Williams voice became tense and she could hear the difference in his tone. "Mom, whose Father Ybarra?"

"He's my boss," she said, alarmed.

"Someone's gonna want to talk to you before it gets to him. Some of the priests are gonna want to talk to you mom."

"Thanks, William," she said, turning away from the others. "Thanks for looking out for me."

"Always," he sighed. "We'll call you later."

"Alright."

William handed the phone back to Mulder. "What was that about?", he asked. alarmed.

"I'll tell you later," she said. "I'm eating dinner with colleagues."

"Alright," Mulder said. "Love you. We'll call you later."

"Love you too. Be careful."

She heard the phone click and then she slid her phone back into her white coat jacket. "Sorry about that."

"No problem," Doctor Edwards said. "We all do it. It's the nature of being doctor's and having a family."

She smiled but said no more. She instead turned back to her turkey burger and fries and nibbled on the lukewarm food as her mind exploded inwardly. Williams words were haunting her.

After dinner, Scully and about a hundred or more other staff and worker's walked across the street to Our Lady, leaving from various restaurant's surrounding it to attend the mandatory meeting for all non-essentials. She followed behind Doctor Ellen Leahy into the auditorium and was walking down the sloped walkway when three priests started to approach her. "Fathers," she said, in greeting.

"Doctor Scully, may we speak to you?"

She turned and walked back the way she came, past those who were taller than her, pushing against her as they came in, blocking her way. She navigated through the crowd and walked down the hall further away from the auditorium. She crossed her arms in front of her defensively. "Can I help you?"

Father O'Conner looked uncomfortable as they stood in a semi-circle around her. "Doctor Scully, we're concerned, not about your work, which as usual is exemplary, but about your association with a new Director that we hired."

"Director Ethan Minette," she said.

"Yes," a tall Priest spoke.

"We are concerned because his work has seemed to be suffering and yet we chose him carefully," another Priests added.

"He beat out hundreds of candidates and we felt that he was the best for the job. And then he gets here and then..."

"We're concerned about the rumors and the reports we're receiving from staff." Father O'Conner said. "We're concerned with Director Minette's work performance and his preoccupation with you."

She glanced down and then looked back up into each man's eyes directly and fiercely. "You need to speak to _him_ about that! Why are you coming to me?"

"We're concerned, Doctor Scully, because this _IS_ a Catholic hospital and we are very strict when it comes to the relationships between our employees especially married employees though we are certainly NOT accusing you of any wrong doing, Doctor. Our concern is the Director's intentions."

Scully's neck was red and her eyes were ablaze. "I'm not aware of his intentions."

"We understand," one of the men said. "What we needed to ask, Doctor Scully, and understand that in a normal hospital, this may be inappropriate for us to ask, but this is a Catholic hospital, Doctor, and we answer to the Church."

She raised an eyebrow. "I understand."

"Doctor, what is your relationship with Director Ethan Minette?"

She looked at all three of them. "Ethan and I were engaged years before I met my husband. I haven't seen him in over twenty years. The Family Appreciation Day dinner was the first time since then and he approached my family and introduced us to his family."

"Are you concerned about his behavior towards you?", Father O'Conner asked.

She scrunched her face. "I'm not afraid for my safety if that's what you're asking me. I am a Former FBI Agent, if you can recall. I can handle it. But, I am concerned that this situation could become a distraction."

"Well," Father O'Conner smiled. "It's certainly good to know that you can take care of yourself but we'd prefer to handle it within the confines of the board."

"What will you do?"

"Well, he is on a thirty day probationary period. All hires are regardless of who they are. We would prefer not to have to take this to Father Ybarra. So, he'll receive a warning. We have strict Catholic codes of behavior that every employee signs upon hire that we expect all hires to abide by. And if they violate those codes of behavior than it's grounds for termination. We answer to the Church."

Scully nodded her head as she stood in front of them. She was a Roman Catholic and though she didn't agree with her faith on every issue she understood it. The priest shook Scully's hand and she walked back into the auditorium. She searched for Doctor Ellen Leahy but couldn't find her amongst the mass of people. She found a row of empty seats in the back and sat down alone. She glanced up just as Father Ybarra walked past her, his eyes burrowing into her as he continued towards the stage. She scanned around her trying to make sure she didn't have any surprises. She was grateful when she didn't see anyone.

He could see her clearly and it was obvious that she was unaware that he was watching her. He was battling with himself. He was not a madman. He would never harm her. She was once _his_ and he had loved her deeply and had never gotten over her. He couldn't possibly work with her everyday and _not _have those same feelings resurface. She was gorgeous, small and delicate yet tougher than he remembered, with deep sea eyes that sucked him in like a black hole. Her red hair was now longer than he had remembered. It looked soft and he wanted to run his fingers through it. He remembered the way she looked up at in him when they were in bed together. Those moments were branded in his brain. She had branded him permanently. 'How could you ever get over Dana Scully?', he thought to himself. His intention wasn't to stalk or be a nuisance, in his thinking, it was more like he just wanted to be around her. He wanted to get to know her again. It couldn't be strange to want to be around someone that had once been his. Right? They were friends, just friends but he could get his fill, couldn't he?

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	8. Chapter 8

**When Worlds Collide**

**Part 8**

**by**

**Trycee**

**Time-Line: Present Day, Rural Virginia**

**Disclaimer: I do not own the X-Files, this is written for fun not profit.**

After the meeting, Scully retreated to her office and dialed the number. "Mulder?"

"Hey, Scully. The meeting over?"

"It is," she said. "Are you staying for a night investigation or are you going home?"

"Looks like we'll be here tonight. Poltergeist activity it seems."

She sighed. "I hate it when you have those."

"I know," he said. "But business is booming..."

"I know," she said, in a quiet voice. "I'm just going to stay here. I don't think I want to be in the house alone without you and Will."

"You could stay at your mom's."

"I think it's too late at night," she sighed. "I'll just sleep in one of the hospital suites for doctor's."

He was quiet a moment. "Tell me what happened earlier."

"He's still doing the same thing."

"You want me to come up there!", Mulder said. "Talk to him. Let him know who he's dealing with?"

She smiled into the phone. "I love you, ya know that?"

"I do," he said with a scratchy voice. "And I love you too."

"Where's Will, is he busy?"

"He's busy texting Joy, they're having some serious texting conversation or whatever. He's supposed to be helping me set-up, but I'm giving the kid a break. We're gonna swing by and pick her up tomorrow so they can spend the whole day together."

"Sounds like he's lost without her..."

"I know the feeling," he said.

"I love you both," she said.

"Love you more," he said as she listened for the click.

She grabbed up her overnight bag that she kept in her office, turned off the light and locked the door and then headed down the long hallway to one of the suites. She checked to make sure it was unoccupied with clean linen and then she locked the door, where a plate shifted into place displaying Occupied on the front of the door. She changed out of her scrubs and quickly showered and then changed into a pair of fresh scrubs. She went about her normal nightly grooming ritual and then she clicked off the lamp and within an hour she was asleep.

The morning came and Scully scrubbed her face and applied her small amount of lipstick, that blended in with the natural red of her lips. She brushed out her hair and then changed into an even fresher pair of scrubs and returned to her office for her white doctor's coat and a fresh cup of coffee. She had slept but as was the case whenever she spent the night at the hospital, it was a fitful sleep, tossing and turning in the unfamiliar bed without the usual warmth of Mulder's body and scent to make her feel safe and loved, without it she felt bitterly cold.

She checked her watch, just enough time to visit Brian before she had to make her rounds. She took the elevator up to the third floor and walked into room 315 but was surprised that he wasn't there. She walked down to the nurses station. "What happened to the patient in room 315?"

The nurse looked it up. "He was discharged last night. Sent to hospice," the nurse said. "Father Ybarra felt there was nothing more that could be done. His parents finally showed up and signed the papers."

She had that familiar twinge in her chest at the news but she didn't let on. She was used to losing patients but it was still hard.

Scully thanked the nurse and turned to walk back to the elevator when she spotted the three priests she had spoken to the night before coming out of the third floor conference room. They looked at her but turned and retreated without speaking a word. She glanced through the blinds covering the windows of the conference room and she saw Ethan hanging up the conference phone. He saw her and called out her name. "Dana! Dana! Come here! Please!"

She walked up to the door and stood in the doorway.

He could see she was uncomfortable. "We need to talk."

She crossed her arms in front of her defensively. "Okay."

He moved up to her standing just a few steps away. He was dressed in a black suit without his white coat, she noticed.

"I made a decision today. That was the board members. They gave me a warning today. They said my work was suffering and that I was distracted because of you."

She stared at him, waiting for him to continue.

"You know what? They were right. My work has suffered. I haven't done a thing since I got here. And I am distracted because of YOU. And you know why?"

She licked her lips and looked away from him.

"Because I'm still in love with you. I love my wife but I am _in_ _love _with you!"

Scully sighed. "Ethan!," she said, firmly. "Ethan..."

"Don't!", he said, raising his hand. "I know what you're going to say. So, let me continue..."

She glanced down to the floor and then looked up. "Okay..."

"I decided that I had never had a reprimand before on my record. My record was spotless and so if I rescinded the offer it would be like I never came here. The board could go on and find another Director and my record will remain spotless. That way, I save face and I'm proactive before they can fire me. I'll take my family back to Nebraska, maybe in a different city though, and work on my marriage...because if I stayed...or if I pretended that I didn't still have feelings for you, I would be lying to myself. I would lose my wife and kids, I'd lose my job and I don't want that. You don't love me back. I got that," he said, looking down. "I think you loved me once..."

She searched his brown eyes and saw the pain in them. "I did love you once, Ethan, but that was a long, long time ago."

He laughed a nervous laugh. "Yeah, I know. You have a beautiful family, by the way. Your son looks exactly like you. I always wondered what our kids..."

"STOP!", she interrupted.

"Sorry," he sighed. "Anyway, my wife is actually excited about moving back, so I just wanted you to know that this is the last time you'll probably ever see me again."

She said nothing as she stared at him.

"I'm sorry I complicated your life."

"You didn't...complicate it. It's flattering actually," she said. "Good luck with your move, Ethan. And good luck with your new life."

He smiled. "Same with you, Dana."

He squeezed past her and walked down the hall to his office. She could see him stuffing his photos and books into a box. Scully took the elevator down to her floor and sat down at the nurses station to look over her notes before she went on her rounds.

Mulder glanced over at William and Joy sitting on the steps. He smiled to himself as he watched the two of them staring into each others eyes having a conversation that only they could hear. It reminded him of himself and Scully. They had no special powers like William and Joy but they could do the same thing. He started up the riding lawnmower and tossed his shirt into the seat. The sun was burrowing down on him and he knew he'd tan even more and he knew Scully would like that. He was surprised when she pulled up into the driveway. He waved to her from the field and watched as she walked over to the front steps, sitting down with William and Joy.

Mulder drove the lawnmower in rows and then the machine cut out on him. William stood up and ran over to help out his dad. Scully smiled as she watched them. Mulder had opened up the lid and was trying to figure out what was wrong while William raced to the barn to grab the tools, returning to assist. Joy turned her attention to her boyfriends mother, "Mrs. Scully, you know, he's been acting a little strange lately," she said, referring to Mulder.

Scully looked at her. "How so?"

"He's always been jealous," Joy answered.

She glanced down at her hands. "I guess it went both ways for us. I have _quite_ the jealous streak when it comes to him myself," she said, red-faced.

"But, the difference was," Joy said, with seriousness in her voice. "He never thought he deserved you."

Scully turned to look into the young girls eyes. "I think he has it all wrong. _I _didn't deserve _him_!", she said, looking back at Mulder.

They're eyes locked and Scully smiled in his direction. She could feel the love pouring from him like waves. She turned away shyly and he smiled an even larger smile.

Mulder fixed the lawnmower and then let William hop on the back. Joy suddenly jumped up. "Will told me to come mow the lawn with him. Bye!"

Scully smiled and waved goodbye. Mulder waited until she was securely on back with Will holding onto his waist like on the back of a motorcycle before he grabbed up his tool box and headed Scully's way. He threw down the tools and grabbed her arm, hauling her up to his chest. He bent down and pressed his hot mouth to hers. She swooned as he held her up in his arms. "God, I missed you!", she sighed.

He kissed her in response, with his lips traveling down her throat until she hissed and squeaked and pushed him away, panting frantically. "Your evil!", she smiled.

Mulder chuckled. "Well, I'm on my way to the shower!", he winked.

"Mulder, we can't! The kids!", she said, looking back at William and Joy who were happily cutting the grass.

"Scully it takes nearly three hours to cut just half this grass. They'll be out here for hours. Come on, live a little!"

She smiled wickedly. "I better not regret this Mulder!"

"Have you ever, Scully?", he said, running his fingers down past her waist and squeezing her cheek.

She squealed and they turned to see if the kids were paying attention but they were too far away.

"Come on, Scully, follow me to the shower. I'll make it worth your while!"

He watched as her smiled grew into an even larger smile and he thought his heart might burst out of his chest. "You are the most beautiful woman I've ever seen."

"Ditto!", she smiled.

"I'm the most beautiful woman you've ever seen?", he said, with a raised eyebrow.

She laughed and playfully smacked him on the arm. "No, but you're beautiful," she sighed.

"Thanks, Scully," he said, as he held her tight.

She looked up into the colorful swirls of his hazel eyes. "And Mulder?"

"Yes."

"You do deserve me and I deserve you. I was only meant to be with you, Mulder. YOU! So stop with that look in your eyes!", she said. "No other man can even come close. Twenty Two years, Mulder...and it was all to be with You!"

He smiled a crooked smile and kissed her soft lips. "Okay," he said, sighing heavily. "I believe it."

"SO," she said, rubbing her hand up his meaty toned chest. "You promised me that taking a shower with you would be worth my time?", she said, licking her lips.

Mulder's chest tightened as he looked at her. Twenty Two Years and he was in as much love then as he was now. His hand engulfed hers and he pulled her up the stairs with him. He glanced once more to check the location of the kids. He could see a smile on William and Joy's faces as they rode the lawnmower cutting down the grass on the massive plot of land. Mulder pulled Scully into the house and closed the door.

**The End**

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